In honor of Valentine’s Day, today’s post is all about love! Not candy hearts and romantic poetry, mind you, but the kind of love you get when you truly enjoy your job.
Not everyone needs or even wants to love what they do, but if you do, you’re not alone. Many of us find meaningful work to be a key part of being satisfied in life. I love being able to say that I’m a private practice career counselor, for instance, and I wake up every morning feeling excited about who I get to talk with and what we can accomplish together. That doesn’t mean that every moment of my work delights me, of course—we can be realistic with our expectations! But despite my need to gear up before I review a resume for a particular job, even though I need to have a little reward for doing my financial paperwork, I still really enjoy what I do. And if that’s something you want, my goal is to help you find it!
Step 1: Think about what you enjoy. What sorts of things do you read for pleasure? What tasks have you done in the past that made time fly by? What makes you light up? If you can’t answer these questions, you might consider a career assessment or two to help you clarify.
Step 2: Try to focus on the nature of the job before you think too much about salary and benefits. Those things are important, of course, and will become factors later on. But for now, we really want to focus on what you enjoy. For example, most jobs have busy periods when people put in long hours. What would you like to be doing during those long hours? What would you do with your time if all your financial needs were taken care of?
Step 3: Talk to people. Your friends and family—or even your dental hygienist or your hair stylist—may have some great tips for you. The people you know can often offer insights or suggestions you might not have thought of on your own. And if people gently steer you away from an idea you have, consider that they might be seeing something you aren’t. It’s not a bad thing if you’re not an ideal candidate for a certain job or organization. In fact, getting this kind of info before you commit to a new role can help make sure what you’re going for is a good fit!
Step 4: Think about the environment. These days, that includes whether you want to work from home, be in an office, or have some sort of hybrid role. You can also consider things like a set schedule versus a flexible one, a workplace where people are around your age or are more diverse, etc. There are no inherently right or wrong answers here. There’s only what’s right for you and what isn’t.
Step 5: Research companies and people. Who out there pays people to do what you want to do? How can you find people who do similar work and connect with them? Keep a list of your target companies and people you want to meet for when you’re ready to start looking in earnest.
Step 6: Identify skill gaps. Once you have a clear idea of what you want to do and where, you may realize that there are some areas you need to develop in order to find a job. Don’t overthink this step, though. You can get basic skills in lots of areas by taking advantage of affordable options like LinkedIn Learning and Udemy, so don’t give it up as a lost cause. You may decide that you eventually need to pursue some additional formal education, but you may not. Explore your options before you give up!
Step 7: Apply! Yes, now it’s time to get those ducks in a row: resume, cover letter, interviewing prep. Be sure you’re customizing your applications each time you apply, even though that likely means applying for fewer jobs. It’s far better to be intentional and put in for things you really want than to hit “quick apply” for anything you are able to do. You will likely be asked for more interviews that way, too.
Step 8: If you get stuck at any point in the process, find a career counselor or coach. We understand how daunting it can be to look for something new, so we are here to help!
